Scootaloo Runs Away
by SPB
Summary: (Originally published on FimFiction. Based on a concept teased by Lauren Faust). Scootaloo's parents are going out to celebrate their anniversary, which means Scootaloo needs a foalsitter. But Scootaloo doesn't think she needs one and decides to run away! Was it such a good idea?


With school having finished for the day, a group of four fillies were walking side-by-side and talking to one another.

"So, what should we do today then?" Sweetie Belle asked her three friends. "Get milkshakes from Sugarcube Corner? Maybe see if there's some major event we can participate in?"

"Or, we could try our luck with findin' more ponies with cutie mark problems," Apple Bloom suggested on a whim. "It's been awhile since we've tackled one, ain't it?"

"As long as it means I can put off going home for long as possible, I'm up for anything," Diamond Tiara said, eager to stay out later. "You'd think Mother would have learned her lesson by now, but sadly not."

Scootaloo couldn't help but giggle a little, even though she felt sorry that her friend still had to tolerate such an unruly mother. Even if Scootaloo herself preferred not to talk about or be seen with her mother that much (she was sure her mother meant well, but more often than not she had a tendency to treat Scootaloo younger than she actually was and it drove the filly crazy). "Maybe your Mom's just jealous of the fact that you know your cutie mark means now, and she doesn't," Scootaloo suggested, helpfully. "Perhaps _she_ might be in need of a Cutie Mark Crusaders intervention!"

Diamond looked across at Scootaloo, and appeared to roll her eyes at the statement. "I'm pretty sure whatever problems my Mother has, a lack of understanding about her special symbol _isn't_ one of them," She replied, a little sharply. "And I've no intention of asking what her cutie mark means anytime soon."

"It was worth a shot, at least." Scootaloo commented, while shrugging her shoulders. "How about we-"

But at that moment, Scootaloo was cut off as she spotted a familiar looking pegasus mare with an amber coat and rose-colored eyes waving to her. It was her mom, Dizzy Twister. Scootaloo knew what _that_ meant, with a sigh she turned to her friends and said in defeat. "Sorry girls, looks like Mom wants me home early today for whatever reason. Guess I won't be able to hang out, after all."

"Well, that stinks, but I'm sure she's got a good reason," Sweetie Belle replied, trying to be optimistic. "We can always hang out tomorrow, or on the weekend."

"Yeah, looks like we'll have to. Don't let me stop you girls from having fun, though. Hopefully, I'll see you tomorrow" Scootaloo said as she bid farewell to her friends, before leaving them to trot over to her mother.

Dizzy Twister smiled broadly, as her daughter approached her. "Hello Scootaloo, how was school today?" She asked in her usual warm (if overly cheerful) tone. "You've been staying out of trouble like I asked, correct?"

Scootaloo nodded. "Yeah, I've been doing good. No fights or anything, and all my grades are good, more or less. So, why did you want me home from school so early today?"

Dizzy just continued to grin, as she led her daughter back to their house on the outskirts of town. "Well, your father and I are going out tonight to celebrate our anniversary," She told her daughter. "Needless to say, we'll be out late."

"Great, mushy stuff." Scootaloo gagged, while inserting a hoof in her mouth. "I don't have to come along for any of that, right?"

Dizzy chuckled at her daughter's snarky remark, she knew that a day would come when Scootaloo wouldn't find romance to be all icky. "Of course not, my little future Wonderbolt. I know things like that aren't really your thing, and besides the restaurant doesn't have a lot for fillies like you. It's a lot fancier than say, Sugarcube Corner."

Scootaloo was thrilled to hear she wouldn't need to be sickened by her parents while they were hugging and smooching and telling how much they loved each other (she'd already been witness to plenty of that nonsense around the house, and she swore they often did it on purpose just to annoy her)! But then she realized what that meant, and her happy mood faded completely, replaced by one of disappointment. "Ah, but Mom," She pouted, while crossing her hooves. "I don't need a foalsitter, I'm not a baby!"

"Oh, of course you aren't," Dizzy cooed. "But somepony needs to make sure you brush your teeth, put on your pajamas, and go to bed at a reasonable time. Plus, if anything happened to you, I'd never forgive myself if somepony wasn't there to take care of you."

"I can take care of myself!" Scootaloo complained loudly, as she and her mom approached their house. It wasn't anything grand, just a simple two-story structure with Cloudsdale like pillars at the front entrance to give it a touch of class.

Dizzy only smirked mirthfully at her daughter's defiant statement, for she'd heard such things before. "I'm sure you probably could, Scootaloo. But your father and I need to make sure. A growing filly like you needs to get plenty of sleep and has to eat right. You do want to grow up big and strong like Rainbow Dash, don't you?"

"Of _course_ I do!" Scootaloo replied, buzzing her wings to show her determination. "But I've got my cutie mark now, so I'm pretty sure I can be left alone for a few hours. It's not like I'm two years old, or anything. Please, just give me a chance to prove myself. I promise I'll do everything you ask of me… _mostly_."

"It's not up for argument, my little pony," Dizzy said seriously, as they approached the front steps. "Besides, your father and I already have a pony in mind to foalsit you. And they'll be here shortly, so be prepared."

"But, Mom!" Scootaloo whined, to no effect.

Dizzy shook her head and scolded her filly. "No buts, Scootaloo. Someday soon you probably won't need a foalsitter anymore, but for right now you do," She then added in a more cheerful tone. "I think you'll really like who we've asked to foalsit you on such short notice."

But Scootaloo was far too irritated by her parents' decision to listen anymore. " _They're treating me like I'm a baby!_ " She thought to herself, while she stormed up to her room immediately after entering the house. " _Even Apple Bloom's family let's her stay home alone sometimes, and she lives with her grandmother. If she can be left to herself on a large farm, surely I can be trusted to do the same,_ " It was then that a plan popped into her head, a somewhat risky idea, but a plan nonetheless. " _I'll just run away before the foalsitter gets here!_ " She decided abruptly in her mind. " _There's no way whoever Mom and Dad picked could know all of my best hiding places! I'll just lay low somewhere until the foalsitter gives up, then I'll just have to make sure to come back home around my bedtime. That'll show Mom and Dad I can manage on my own!_ "

The gears in the orange-coated filly's mind began turning, as she began planning her daring escape and where she would hide. But she didn't have much time to think, before she heard the sound of the front doorbell ringing! She realized what that must mean!

"Scootaloo, come on down and meet your foalsitter!" Dizzy Twister called upstairs to her daughter.

Scootaloo hadn't been expecting the foalsitter to arrive quite so soon, she hadn't even finalized her escape plan yet! But she wasn't about to spend even a few seconds tolerating a pony who would surely do embarrassingly cute things like ruffle her mane and call her pet names. Maybe it was cool when a pony like Rainbow Dash did it, but for almost anypony else such a thing just feel like they were treating her like a little kid.

Knowing that her parents would suspect something if she didn't respond, Scootaloo decided that she'd no other choice but to at least _try_ to escape now. Quick as a flash, she dashed over to her bedroom window and opened it, a faint breeze reminded the filly that although it was beautiful out, it was still early Spring and temperatures weren't even close to their warmest yet. Reluctantly, Scootaloo climbed through the open window, slowly positioning herself until only her front hooves were holding onto the windowsill. "Oh, I should've thought this through!" Scootaloo said to herself, as she tried to get her tiny wings to begin buzzing, in the hopes that at least she might get airborne enough to slow her descent.

"Scootaloo, are you up there?" Dizzy shouted, this time sounding a bit more concerned since her daughter hadn't responded yet.

"Come on, Scootaloo, your foalsitter is down here and she's waiting for you." Scootaloo's father called as well, sounding noticeably less patient than his wife.

Knowing that her cover would be blown if she replied, Scootaloo said nothing. She just listened for the telltale buzzing sound, and when she heard it, reluctantly let go of the windowsill! Sure enough, she was able to hover for a few seconds, but that was hardly enough time to adjust her landing, let alone truly cushion her fall. Scootaloo fell to the ground, landing in a nearby bush with a thud. "Ow!" She groaned, while slowly picking herself up. A quick check of her frame confirmed that nothing was broken, though she was noticeably sore in a couple of areas. Rather than dwell on her injuries however, Scootaloo took off running. Whereto, she didn't have a clue, she'd think of that once she was certain she had a sizeable lead on her parents and her would-be foalsitter!

"Scootaloo, I'm not asking again," Dizzy Twister demanded, banging on her daughter's door. "Come down here, now! Please!" When there was still no response, Dizzy reluctantly pushed it open. When she stepped inside, she gasped as she couldn't believe what she saw! The window was wide open, and there were noticeable tiny hoofprints leading to it if one looked closer. It certainly didn't take a genius to figure out what had happened. " _Why would she run off?!_ " Dizzy thought ruefully, as she stared out of the window to see if her daughter was still nearby. " _Especially after I went to great lengths to get Rainbow Dash to be her foalsitter tonight!_ "

* * *

Scootaloo kept on running with no particular destination in mind. She'd apparently managed to give her parents and her foalsitter the slip, and so far it seemed like they'd no idea she wasn't in her room. But the tomboyish pegasus knew that state of affairs would change soon, which meant she had to start looking for a good place to hide out. It didn't take long for her to settle on such a location. "The Crusaders Clubhouse will be _perfect_!" She reasoned to herself, while making a mad dash for Sweet Apple Acres. "It's so obvious that nopony would _ever_ look there! I just hope it's not being used at the moment!"

As luck would have it, the clubhouse was indeed deserted. Scootaloo raced right up the clubhouse steps, bolted inside, and locked the door tight behind her! She proceeded to close up the windows and turn off the lights as well, because she wanted to make sure nopony would be able to spot her. (It never seemed to occur to her that perhaps it would be better to leave the windows _open_ and the lights _on_ , so as not to attract any suspicion).

Scootaloo was thoroughly content to just wait it out in the clubhouse, thinking it wouldn't take too long for whoever her parents had hired to give up on looking for her. And once the coast was clear, Scootaloo would just slip back out and have herself the time before returning, with nopony being any the wiser.

Alas, things are never as easy as they seem, and it wasn't long (not even a minute as far as Scootaloo could tell) before she heard her parents calling out. "Scootaloo, where are you?!" And to make matters worse, a third, equally familiar voice joined the chorus of yells, Scootaloo immediately recognizing it as belonging to Rainbow Dash, her big sister. "Come on, squirt! We know you're here, somewhere!" Rainbow called. "There's no need to hide."

Scootaloo reluctantly opened the clubhouse windows, and she was most annoyed to see three pegasi, or to be more exact, two mares and a stallion. The stallion had an orange coat only slightly darker in shade than his daughter's, the same held true for his purple eyes. The first mare had a familiar amber coat, rose-colored eyes, and a mane and tail colored pink with pale raspberry highlights. And of course, the second mare was cyan-coated and had a rainbow-colored mane and tail. They didn't seem to be aware of her hidey-hole just yet, but Scootaloo was certain it was only a matter of time until they discovered her, unless she did something about it. " _Why is Rainbow Dash helping my parents look for me?_ " Scootaloo pondered, as she contemplated how to escape undetected. " _Now that_ _ **she's**_ _part of the search, I'm gonna have to really ramp up my hiding game!_ " At the moment, Scootaloo wished more than anything that she had her trusty scooter with her, but she'd left it behind when she'd fled. Bolting out the front door was out of the question though, the grown-ups were too close, and rushing directly out of the clubhouse would just play right into their waiting hooves.

Glancing out through the other window, Scootaloo took note of a nearby tree branch, and it was then that another idea came to her mind. " _I'll just use the trees to make my escape,_ " She thought. " _It'll be just like my own private little Daring-Do adventure! And, best of all, neither my parents_ _ **or**_ _Rainbow Dash will be expecting it!_ " Then, without so much as a second's hesitation, Scootaloo backed up to the other side of the club house, and got a running start. Just before she would've smacked into the window, she leapt out, managing to grab hold of the tree branch with her hooves. Taking a moment to get her bearings, Scootaloo proceeded to carefully maneuver from tree branch to tree branch, effectively giving the trio of grown-ups the slip for the time being!

Of course, there were only so many trees and so many branches, and it wasn't so long before Scootaloo found herself at the edge of Sweet Apple Acres, with no foliage in sight for her to leap onto. But that was fine, the orange coated filly was certain she was still far enough ahead of her parents and big sister, so she had plenty of time to figure out how to get down from the last tree. Fate had other ideas in mind, however. At that precise moment there was an ominous crack, and the branch began to give way, taking Scootaloo down with it! She helplessly flailed her hooves in panic for a couple of seconds, as if somehow that would prolong her descent. Then she noticed the wings on either side of her. "Oh, of course. Silly me." She said to herself, and started to flap them. She knew she wouldn't be able to fly, and quite frankly taking-off was far from her mind at the moment. But she could at least use them to slow (and hopefully prevent) her inevitable collision-course with the ground, effectively cushioning the blow.

Scootaloo hoped for at least a bit more energy, but all she managed to get out of her ailing wings (still a bit sore from earlier) was about a second or two of slowed air time, before she started plunging once more. "Not good!" Scootaloo said to herself, as she braced for what was going to be a hard impact! By an amazing stroke of luck, she somehow managed to land on her hooves, but the landing still stung a bit, to say nothing of her poor wings which now ached rather noticeably. "Okay, never doing _that_ again." Scootaloo lamented, and she was content to just lay there while she waited for the pain to subside.

Before the filly had a chance to think of resting however, her ears picked up the familiar voices of her parents and big sister nearby. All of them calling out. "Scootaloo!" as loud as they could. Also, given how quickly their voices registered in the filly's ears, she could tell they were a lot closer than she had wanted or expected them to be.

As much as she might have wanted to just stay still and rest, Scootaloo rose to her hooves and took off galloping once again. " _They're being far more persistent than I thought they would be!_ " She thought to herself, while running into town. " _Guess I'll just have to pick someplace a bit less obvious to hide, like maybe behind Sugarcube Corner? Yeah, that'll work!_ "

* * *

Scootaloo sped on, only occasionally daring to glance back to see if she was being pursued. Every time she checked, she breathed a small sigh of relief to see that wasn't the case, but with each peek she was reminded of her urge to flee as her parents and Rainbow Dash continued to call out her name in vain.

" _Maybe I should change up my tactics,_ " Scootaloo mulled even as she continued to head along the path which lead towards Sugarcube Corner. " _Perhaps I could hide out at Diamond Tiara's place and spend the rest of the day with her?!_ " But just barely after that idea appeared in her mind, the orange coated pegasus dismissed it. " _Diamond Tiara and I may be friends now, but there's no way she's gonna just stick her neck out for me and lie to my parents. I don't even think she's met them yet, well aside from seeing my mom today of course! Besides, even if Diamond wouldn't mind, her mom probably wouldn't be willing to let me stay! Something tells me Spoiled Rich still has it out for my friends and I, just because her daughter hangs out with us instead of her. Guess ponies are right to joke about how her surname should begin with something besides an 'r', just wish I knew what they meant. Spoiled Bich just sounds stupid._ "

At last, fairly tired, Scootaloo reached her destination of Sugarcube Corner. And, after pausing just a moment to catch her breath, she darted around to the back. Hopefully The Cakes wouldn't spot her, and if they did, well perhaps she could convince them not to rat her out.

Scootaloo took steps to control her breathing, worried that the loud gasps she was making now would give her away. All the while, she heard what sounded like hooves approaching the front of the cafe, and she could swear she was able to make out their voices.

Meanwhile, Dizzy and Quick Shot, along with Rainbow Dash, had reached the front of Sugarcube Corner. The three of them didn't seem to be aware of the fact that Scootaloo was out back, or if they did they certainly weren't showing it. "I know I saw the squirt run this way, she _has_ to be around here somewhere." Rainbow remarked, while keeping her eyes peeled.

"Well, perhaps The Cakes have spotted her," Dizzy said, as she suggested they inquire inside. "It probably wouldn't hurt to ask. And, who knows? Maybe by going into the cafe we might be able to trick Scootaloo into coming out of wherever she might be holed-up."

"It's worth a shot, she _has_ hidden here a couple of times before," Quick Shot mentioned, thinking about all the times she'd 'gone missing' before. "Her and Sweetie Belle used to crouch under the tables back when they thought they were the only blank flanks in school. Funny how nopony ever seemed to notice their obvious hiding spot." So it was decided that the three adults went into Sugarcube Corner. However, instead of finding either Mr. or Mrs. Cake behind the counter, they found Pinkie Pie.

"Hi, welcome to Sugarcube Corner!" Pinkie cheerfully greeted, looking directly at Rainbow Dash as she added. "Rainbow Dash, why didn't you tell me Dizzy and Quick Shot invited you to join their anniversary celebration, and that they were coming here?!"

Rainbow quickly shot down the notion. "Pinkie, I'm not here because Mr. and Mrs. Twister wanted me to part of their anniversary celebration, and they're not here because it's where they want to celebrate their anniversary," She then went on to explain. "We're looking for Scootaloo, she ran away from home and we seem to have lost her at the moment. Have you seen her at all?"

"Scootaloo? Oh yeah, I've seen her! I was just out back a few minutes ago taking out the trash, and I saw her hiding behind the dumpster!" Pinkie answered, in her usual blunt manner. "I didn't tell her though, I figured she was probably playing some kind of hide and seek game that I wasn't part of! Kinda wish she'd asked me to join in though, I'm a really good seeker!"

Having overheard Pinkie's remarks, Scootaloo groaned and wanted nothing more than to kick something with her front hooves (alas, nothing presented itself to the filly at the moment, besides the dumpster and she was in no hurry to subject herself to more agony) " _Darn it all! I forgot about Pinkie Pie and her blabbermouth!_ " She thought, and immediately emerged from her not-so-secret hiding place and started running back to the front. " _Now I've got to find_ _ **another**_ _new hiding place! Someplace where nopony will think to look for me, and where there won't be anypony around to spot me to give away my position!_ " Scootaloo quickly realized that there was only **ONE** place in all of Ponyville that could fit those requirements (it never occurred to the filly to possible 'borrow' the balloon and go up to Cloudsdale to hide). And unfortunately, without her scooter, it would be a long march. She would have to take the route though, as there were simply no other options available.

"Scootaloo, wait!" Dizzy called out, as she, Quick Shot, and Rainbow Dash emerged from behind Sugarcube Corner just in time to see the tomboyish pegasus dart away over the horizon!

"For a pegasus who can't fly yet, she sure can run fast," Quick Shot commented on the filly's speed. "I think she gets it from me, unfortunately. Gotta be quick to be a good hockey player."

"Well, we can't give up yet!" Rainbow Dash said firmly to the her two companions. "We were so close that time! If we'd only been here a little bit sooner, we would've nabbed her right then and there!"

"We might still have a chance," Dizzy replied, as she began to realize something. "So far, Scootaloo's been hiding out in all her usual places. But after this near-miss, well if I know my daughter like I think I do, she's going to opt for someplace where she thinks nopony will even _think_ to look! And I can only think of one possible location."

"Fluttershy's cottage!" Rainbow and Quick Shot both realized simultaneously. Then all three adult pegasi took off, this time opting to travel by air rather than just pursue on hoof. The chase was about to come to an end, they'd see to that!

* * *

Scootaloo was running too fast and was too focused on her new destination to pay much attention to anything else, if she was she might have noticed a trio of shadows seemingly zip past her. At last, as the sun was beginning to set off to the west, Scootaloo spotted what she'd been looking for. There stood Fluttershy's cottage, resting just on the outskirts of the Everfree Forest.

Scootaloo raced right up to the cottage, hoping that the door would be unlocked. But suddenly, she found her path ahead blocked when her mother landed directly in front of her! "Hold it right there, young filly!" Dizzy said in a serious tone of voice.

Scootaloo turned to gallop in the opposite direction, but her escape route was quickly cut off when her father and Rainbow Dash both landed just over the bridge! Frantically, the filly looked all around for any possible way of escape, but found none. Reluctantly, the orange-coated filly realized that she'd finally been caught. " _Dumb grown-ups, they never play fair!_ " She thought to herself. " _Always ganging up on us kids!"_

All three adults trotted right up to Scootaloo, quickly surrounding her before she had a chance to even _think_ of trying to flee again. Dizzy was the first to speak up. "Scootaloo, how _dare_ you run off on your mother and father like that! Do you have any idea how worried we were?! Thank goodness you're safe!" She asked, adopting a stern scolding tone.

Scootaloo reluctantly looked her rather unhappy mother in the eye as she replied in a huff. "What does it matter?! You and Dad always treat me like I'm a baby! But I'm not a baby, I can take care of myself!"

"And just what do you think running away would achieve, young filly?!" Quick Shot chimed in, a disapproving frown registered clearly on his face. "You could've gotten hurt, or worse!"

"Your folks are right, Scoots!" Rainbow Dash added, thinking that she could be the one to get through to the stubborn youngster. "Running away like that was _so_ not cool! Even I never did that as a filly, and Celestia knows there were times where I couldn't stand either of my parents!"

Scootaloo couldn't believe this, now her parents had somehow managed to brainwash her big sister to their way of thinking. Before this, Rainbow Dash was the one adult (aside from possibly Miss Cheerilee) she was certain she could count on to side with her. "Well as you can see, I'm just fine!" Scootaloo commented, trying her best to ignore the aching feeling in both her hooves and wings. "Why do you always have to be so paranoid about me?! It's not like I can't take care of myself at all, without an adult around!"

Dizzy Twister shook her head upon hearing this inaccurate statement. "You're missing the point, Scootaloo. Your father and I don't think you can't do anything on your own."

"And yet you're hiring a foalsitter to watch over me tonight, while you two go out, to kiss and say how much you love each other!" Scootaloo remarked, once again pretending to gag. "Don't you get it?! I've got my cutie mark now, I'm becoming a big mare! I don't need somepony to constantly watch over me while you two aren't around!"

At this remark, Dizzy, Quick Shot, and even Rainbow Dash threw back their heads and laughed. This only served to get Scootaloo even more riled up, as she stomped her hooves to create a cloud of dust and demanded: "What's so funny?! What are you all laughing about?!"

"You ran off before you even had the chance to see who your foalsitter was gonna be, kiddo," Rainbow explained, while wiping away her tears of merriment away. "And, guess who that was?"

Scootaloo rolled her eyes and sighed. "Probably some random stranger I've never heard of before, who's going to completely overlook the fact that I'm no longer four years old and don't need to be babied all day and night long."

Rainbow shook her head, as a smile crossed her face. "Nope, you're completely wrong, Scoots. _I'm_ gonna be your foalsitter, your parents specifically asked me if I could do so, and I told them 'Of course! I won't even take any bits, either!'"

"Wait...what?! Is this true?!" Scootaloo asked her parents, both of whom nodded in unison. Scootaloo found herself at a loss for words. "B-b-b..." Was all she could say, anything else refused to come out.

"I was going to tell you right when we got home," Dizzy said to her daughter. "But then you stormed off before I even got the chance. Rainbow Dash was actually the first pony your father and I had in mind when we decided you would need a foalsitter."

Scootaloo was certain this was all just a dream, or at least a bad joke that was about to end with a laugh. There was no way this could be true. "But... but, Rainbow Dash is an official Wonderbolt now," She finally commented, after a lengthy pause. "Doesn't that mean she doesn't have _time_ to be a foalsitter anymore?"

"Not so, we made sure to check that her schedule was clear before we gave her permission." Quick Shot explained.

"I may be a Wonderbolt, and that _does_ sometimes interfere with my personal life," Rainbow Dash added, hovering close to Scootaloo. "But it's not a year-round occupation, we don't all participate in every single show. It just so happens that I'm overdue for some time off for the foreseeable future. Besides, I'm pretty sure Spitfire will cut me some slack for helping out a friend on such short notice."

"Look, Scootaloo," Dizzy commented, trying her best to sound strict while also being kind and gentle. "Just because your father and I sometimes get a foalsitter for you, doesn't mean we don't think you can take care of yourself. We know that you're getting older and that you can take on more responsibilities on your own. But every now and then you still do need somepony to watch over you, just to make sure you're okay and go to bed at a reasonable hour. Things like that. We still let you walk to and from school everyday by yourself, and allow you to hang out with your friends after school, on weekends, and on holidays. But every so often, when neither your father or I are around, we need to ensure there's still somepony we can trust supervising you. You may have your cutie mark now, but you're still just a filly, and fillies occasionally need an adult to foalsit them. It's not because we want to baby you or treat you like a baby, it's because we want to make sure you're safe. Do you understand?"

Her mom's entire comment was a lot to take in, but Scootaloo more or less got the gist of it. "I guess," She sighed in defeat, and reluctantly apologized. "I'm sorry for running away from home and making you all worry about me."

"It's alright, Scootaloo. The important thing is, nopony got hurt," Dizzy said in relief, as she approached her daughter and gave her a loving hug. "You are still going to have to be punished for what you did, but I think we can hold off on discussing that in detail until tomorrow. For right now, you'll be grounded for about an hour or two, and Rainbow Dash is to make sure you don't leave your room."

"Ah, that's not fair!" Scootaloo complained, as she knew there was no way she could sneak past her big sister.

"Well, perhaps you'll think about that the next time you ignore our commands and decide to run away from home," Quick Shot said sternly. "Now come on, your mother and I need to get going, and you need to return home before sundown. Rules are rules, kiddo."

"Sorry, squirt, I have to side with your folks on this one," Rainbow shrugged. "But if you behave yourself and don't complain too much for the duration of your grounding, I'll read you a Daring-Do book before you go to bed tonight. One that I haven't seen myself yet, so we can share the excitement together! How's that sound?"

"Oh, I love Daring Do! It's a deal!" Scootaloo happily exclaimed, as she, her parents, and her big sister set off back to her house together.

* * *

"Now Rainbow Dash, remember to keep an eye on Scootaloo to ensure she completes her _entire_ grounding sentence, no 'ifs', or 'buts'." Dizzy cautioned, as she and her husband prepared to leave a short time later.

"Relax, I know every trick Scootaloo could ever think of, especially the one where she puts a pillow under the bed," Rainbow Dash boasted. "She won't be able to fool me!"

"Do make sure she behaves herself,too," Quick Shot added as an extra proviso. "And Scootaloo, remember to eat your vegetables, brush your teeth, and be under your covers at your usual bedtime. Don't think that just because Rainbow Dash is your foalsitter, you can get around those rules."

Scootaloo blushed in embarrassment. "Dad!" She whined, prompting a few giggles from her parents and Rainbow Dash.

"Only joking, I'm sure you know what's expected of you." Quick Shot replied with a humorous wink.

"And do be sure you take a bath tonight," Dizzy advised. "After all that running around, your body is probably all dirty and sweaty from running around town. You wouldn't that to get on your bedsheets and ruin them now, would you?"

Scootaloo only nodded in reply. " _Rainbow Dash probably would've made me take one anyway,_ " She thought to herself. " _As long as it's not a bubble bath, I don't have a problem with it. But maybe I should make sure by getting rid of the bubbly stuff my mom keeps around for 'special occasions'._ "

"Enjoy your anniversary, Mr. and Mrs. Twister!" Rainbow called out, as Dizzy and Quick Shot departed. "And don't worry about Scootaloo, I'll take good care of her!" She and Scootaloo waved until both Dizzy and Quick Shot were out of sight down the path.

* * *

"Well, that sure was 'exciting'," Quick Shot commented to his wife, as they took to the skies with a flap of their wings. "I don't think I'll forget _that_ experience anytime soon. Perhaps we should think about investing in some filly-proof locks for Scootaloo's bedroom window, just in case she ever decides to try that escape act again."

"We can worry about that later," Dizzy replied with a broad grin. "For now, let's not forget why we're going out tonight. It isn't just to celebrate our anniversary, you know."

Quick Shot smiled in return and nodded his head. "Hard to believe Scootaloo's birthday is coming up already, feels like it was just yesterday she got her cutie mark. I just wish she hadn't been hiding out behind Sugarcube Corner, otherwise we could've ordered the cake for her birthday right then and there."

"We'll have to remember to do that on our way back," Dizzy said, making a mental note of this. "But for right now, there's a table for two at Cloudsdale's best restaurant, and it's calling our name."


End file.
